June Wine Club II

It baffles me that German wines are still something of a hard sell in the UK. I imagine that they’re all too readily associated by consumers with that ghastly German export Liebfraumilch, which no self-respecting German will ever have heard of, let alone have drunk.

Forgive me if I’m teaching you to suck eggs, but fine German Riesling, which I adore, has nothing to do with such ghastly vinous bubblegum (which is chiefly made from Müller-Thurgau) and the 2007 Weingut Göttelmann-Dautenpflänzer Riesling Kabinett Trocken ‘Halbmond’ (1), from the Nahe, is a thing of great beauty, and ideal summer fare. Bone-dry, crisp and clean, and with a nice touch of bottle age, it has the expected complex notes of petrol, apples, honey and peaches and is simply delicious lightly chilled as a mid-morning sharpener or as an early evening aperitif. £11.95.

White Rhônes are also high on the list of what Tigger likes at the moment, and white Châteauneuf-du-Pape especially. These are in fact something of a rarity, given that only around 7 per cent of the appellation’s production is dedicated to white wines, and the 2011 Domaine de Nalys, Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc (2) is a cracking example. It ain’t cheap at £19.95, but I reckon you could almost double the price for an equivalent quality white burgundy. A tasty blend of Grenache Blanc, Clairette and Bourboulenc with splashes of Roussanne, Picpoul and Picardan, it has cream, honey and citrus notes on the nose and palate and a long, long finish of supple fruit with a touch of underlying savouriness. I tried it with Mrs Ray’s tarragon chicken and it went down a treat.

As we’ve discussed in these pages before, rosé is all the rage and FromVineyardsDirect have long championed top-quality examples.